Air conveying system for filling of air seeder tank

ABSTRACT

An air cart for distributing air entrained particulate material from a chamber or tank to a plurality of distribution lines for application to an agricultural field has a tank refilling feature utilizing air flow from the cart distribution system or from a dedicated pneumatic source. The cart conveying system air flow is diverted and passed through an assembly containing multiple venturis which also receives particulate material from a supply source. The air entrained material from the source is conveyed to and gently deposited in the cart tank. Exhaust air from the tank may be directed back into the cart conveying system or vented through an air diffuser located beneath the cart. Exhaust air which is directed back to the cart conveying system may return to a location closely adjacent that from which it was originally diverted.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to farm implements and, more particularly,to an apparatus for supplying particulate material such as seed,fertilizer, herbicide or insecticide to one or more tanks of an airseeder. The invention may also be used with other farm implements suchas a planter or fertilizer application equipment.

2. Description of the Related Art

Air seeder systems include a traction unit with an air cart in tow andfrequently include a third unit such as a cultivator either intermediatethe traction unit and air cart or towed behind the air cart.Agricultural implements that employ an air seeder system to apply seed,fertilizer, or other particulate material, either sub-surface or to thesurface of a farm field, typically have a material supply source such asone or more tanks that are loaded with the particulate material. Thetanks have or are associated with a metering device, which typicallyconsists of a rotating element, which meters the particulate materialfrom the tanks into a set of distribution channels, such as conduits,hoses, etc., for application to the farm field. In most systems, apneumatic source such as a fan or blower provides air to convey anddistribute material through the distribution channels. Periodically, thetank's supply of particulate material must be replenished. Typically, ascrew auger or belt conveyor feeds the material from a source such as asupply vehicle to the tank. Grain augers, conveyor belts and similarmechanical seed handling equipment may cause damage to certain types ofseeds. The delivery of canola seeds in particular is a delicate process.Seeds are expensive and physical damage to seeds may affect theirgermination and germination rate, thus, damage to the seeds whilefilling the tanks should be minimized.

What is needed in the art is an agricultural product conveying systemwhich minimizes product damage.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides an agricultural product air conveyorsystem which minimizes the likelihood of product damage while maximizingthe product flow rate in filling and refilling the tanks.

The invention in one form is directed to a pneumatic agriculturalproduct conveying system which includes a product supply chamber, apneumatic source and a plenum with a plurality of outlets. The plenumnormally receives air flow from the pneumatic source. A plurality ofdistribution lines extend from the plenum outlets to convey particulatematerial to an agricultural implement and to an agricultural field. Arefilling system includes an elongated conduit having an inlet near oneend for occasionally receiving product from a supply source and anoutlet near the other end for delivering product to the chamber toreplenish the product supply in the chamber. An air source may includean air flow diverter intermediate the pneumatic source and theutilization implement for normally coupling the pneumatic source andimplement, and occasionally directing air flow away from the implementand toward the conduit inlet of the filling system. A dedicated airsource for the filling system may alternatively be employed. A venturibox has an air inlet coupled to the air flow source and an outletcoupled to the filling system conduit one end providing a region ofreduced air pressure to draw product from the particulate materialsupply source into the air stream.

The invention in another form is directed to a method of replenishingthe supply of a particulate agricultural material in the tank of apneumatic agricultural material conveying system. Air from a pneumaticsource is supplied to a hopper which functions as an agriculturalmaterial reservoir for the filling system. The supplied air passesthrough a restriction to create a region of increased air velocity and aso-called venturi effect. The venturi effect essentially creates asuction effect to minimize the contact friction of particles against thebottom portions of the hose and for ingesting as many particles aspossible of agricultural material from the hopper providing an airentrained flow of material. This air flow and material particles areconveyed to the tank where the material is deposited and excess airvented. Venting of air without particles may be to any suitablelocation. In one embodiment, air venting can be to a diffuser. Inanother embodiment, air venting may be back into the material conveyingsystem closely adjacent the location from which it was supplied.

In a further form, the invention is directed to an air cart having apneumatic source for supplying a flow of air entrained agriculturalproduct from a product tank to be applied by a utilization implement toan agricultural field. There is an elongated conduit having an inletnear one end for occasionally receiving product from a supply source andan outlet near the other end for delivering product to the tank toreplenish the product supply in the tank. An assembly (venturi box) thatcan contain one or a multiplicity of venturi sections has an air inletadapted to be coupled to the cart or other pneumatic source and anoutlet coupled to the conduit one end for drawing product from thesupply source into an air flow from the pneumatic source. The pneumaticsource may be a dedicated independent device or may be implemented by anair flow diverter intermediate the pneumatic source and the utilizationimplement which normally couples the pneumatic source and implement, andoccasionally directs air flow away from the implement and to the venturibox air inlet.

An advantage of the present invention is minimizing seed damage during atank filling or refilling operation.

Another advantage is an effective treatment of the residue in exhaustair from the filling system to minimize the exposure of seed dust tooperators.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above-mentioned and other features and advantages of this invention,and the manner of attaining them, will become more apparent and theinvention will be better understood by reference to the followingdescription of embodiments of the invention taken in conjunction withthe accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a side view of an air cart part of an air seeder equipment,and may include an air conveying system for filling and refilling thecart tank according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a side view of an air cart similar to that of FIG. 1, butshowing an air filling system with a dedicated pneumatic source;

FIG. 3 is a front view of an air cart showing the air filling system ofFIG. 2 and an exhaust air diffuser;

FIG. 4 is a schematic representation of a pneumatic agricultural productconveying system incorporating the present invention in one form;

FIG. 5 is an isometric view of the rotor of an exemplary two-way valvefor the system of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a cut-away isometric view of the rotor of FIG. 5 from adifferent perspective;

FIG. 7 is a top view of the rotor of FIG. 6 disposed in a suitable valvehousing;

FIG. 8 is an isometric view of a flow divider box forming an alternatetwo-way valve for the system of FIG. 4;

FIG. 9 is a cut-away isometric view of the flow divider box of FIG. 8 inthe normal seeding or fertilizing position;

FIG. 10 is cut-away isometric view of the divider box of FIGS. 8 and 9transitioning from the normal position to a tank replenishing position;

FIG. 11 is a cut-away isometric view of the divider box of FIGS. 8 and 9in the tank replenishing position;

FIG. 12 is a schematic representation of an air conveying system similarto FIG. 4, but employing a different valving configuration;

FIG. 13 is a schematic representation of an air conveying system similarto FIG. 4, but utilizing an alternate air supply location closer to thetank;

FIG. 14 is a simplified view of the plenum of FIG. 13 showing a flowdeflector in the normal seeding or fertilizing position;

FIG. 15 is a view of the plenum of FIG. 14 showing a flow deflector in atank filling position;

FIG. 16 is a schematic representation of an air conveying system similarto FIG. 4, but utilizing an alternate configuration for venting air fromthe tank;

FIG. 17 is a top view of an air cart schematically showing the productreplenishing flow paths and air diffuser of FIG. 16;

FIG. 18 is a schematic representation of a two-way valve for the systemof FIG. 16;

FIG. 19 is a schematic cross-sectional representation of an air lock andventuri box which may be employed in any configuration as illustrated inFIGS. 2, 3, 4, 12, 13, 16 and 17; and

FIG. 20 is a cross-sectional view along lines 20-20 of FIG. 19.

Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding partsthroughout the several views. The exemplifications set out hereinillustrate embodiments of the invention and such exemplifications arenot to be construed as limiting the scope of the invention in anymanner.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to FIG. 1, there isshown an air cart comprising a portion of a known pneumatic agriculturalproduct distribution system which generally includes a traction unit(not shown) which may be coupled to air cart 10 for towing the air cart10 in the direction of arrow 12. The system usually includes as a thirdunit, a utilization implement such as an air drill (not shown) forseeding, cultivating and/or fertilizing operations. Air carts can betow-between or tow-behind the traction unit. A tow-between cart has theadvantage of the drill being the last implement over the field and donot leave tire prints behind. A tow-behind cart has the advantage of thedrill being closer to the traction unit for improved viewing of theseeding operation. As is known in the art, the air cart 10 has one ormultiple large tanks 14 which store a certain quantity of particulatematerial, e.g., seed and/or inoculant, or fertilizer, and a meteringsystem 16 that meters the particulate material from the tank or tanks 14to the air drill. The tank 14 may comprise a single compartment orseveral compartments, such as 18, 20, and 22. Multiple compartment tanksprovide the option of performing multiple operations, e.g., seeding andfertilizer application in a single pass. In addition to beingmechanically linked with the air drill, the air cart 10 and the airdrill are interconnected by an air/product delivery system whichincludes tubing and/or hoses such as distribution lines 24. Air issupplied to the product delivery system via a manifold 26 or plenum by afan assembly 28 sometimes mounted adjacent the front of the tank 14 andnear the metering unit 16. Alternately, the fan assembly 28 may bemounted rearward of the tank or adjacent a side of the tank. As known inthe art, the fan creates a turbulent air flow that carries particulatematerial metered by metering system 16 into and along distribution lines24 to the utilization implement for applying the air entrained productto an agricultural field.

The supply of particulate material in the tank 18 is occasionallyreplenished from a supply vehicle by an auger or belt conveyor 30 shownin the stowed position. The auger is pivotably fixed to the cart 10 andhas its outlet 32 aligned with the appropriate tank lid 34, 36 or 38during a refilling operation. As mentioned earlier, this auger conveyorsystem may cause significant damage to the material being conveyed dueto its aggressive mechanical geometries and operational settings.

In FIGS. 2 and 3, the auger is replaced by an air material conveyingsystem employing a dedicated fan 39 and motor. The supply of particulatematerial in the cart tank 41 is replenished from a hopper 43 whichreceives material, for example, by gravity flow, from a supply sourcesuch as a truck or other delivery vehicle. The material passes through arotary feeder or air lock mechanism 45, and passes upwardly through hose47 and, from tank outlet 49, into the tank 41. The end view of FIG. 3includes an exhaust air diffuser to be discussed later.

In FIG. 4, the product conveying system employs an air flow divertersuch as the two-way valve 44 at the fan outlet intermediate the conduitportions leading to the plenum 46. During normal operation for materialdistribution from the tank 48, air flows to the implement from the fan40, the two-way valve 44 and conduit 42 to the plenum 46. Particulatematerial is delivered from a metering device, such as 16 of FIG. 1, tothe several air/product distribution lines such as 50, 52 and 54 and toa utilization implement such as an air drill (with openers or groundengaging tools).

Occasionally the material in tank 48 requires replenishing. This isaccomplished by directing air flow away from the implement. Valve 44directs air flow by way of conduit 56 to an assembly containing multipleventuris shown as venturi box 58. A supply source such as theagricultural material reservoir or hopper 60 provides, by way of an airlock or rotary feeder 62, a material flow to be mixed with the airpassing into the venturi box 58. The air entrained material is thenconveyed by conduit 64 to replenish the material in the tank 48. Thematerial particles settle in the tank and exhaust air is returned to thevalve 44 and conduit 42 by way of conduit 66 to be diffused at a lowerair speed through the product conveying system.

Valve 44 may take the form shown in FIGS. 5-7. Plug valve 68 has a rotoror plug 70 with a transverse passageway 72 normally providing air flowfrom the pneumatic source 40 to the plenum 46. The rotor 70 also has apair of sculptured regions 74 and 76 which, when the valve is in thereplenish position of FIG. 7, cooperate with valve housing 78 to divertair flow 82 from the fan 40 by way of conduit 80, region 74 and conduit56 to the venturi box 58. In this same position, exhaust air return 84from the tank passes through conduit 66, region 76 and conduit 42 backto the plenum 46. Rotation of the rotor 70 by ninety degrees in eitherdirection aligns the passageway or bore 72 with the conduits 80 and 42for normal operation. A similar two-way valve function may be achievedby a flow divider box as illustrated in FIGS. 8-11.

FIG. 8 shows the flow divider as a rectangular conduit 86 with fan airentering at 88 and flowing to the plenum at 90. Air supply line 56 andair return line 66 are coupled to the side of the conduit. An internalbaffle 92 normally closes conduits 56 and 66 as shown in FIG. 9. Thebaffle may be slid from the position of FIG. 9 to that of FIG. 10 andsubsequently pivoted about the axis 96 of control rod 94 to the locationshown in FIG. 11 to divert incoming air 88 to the venturi box as shownby arrow 82. Exhaust air 84 in conduit 66 enters the conduit 86 andexits downstream at 90.

FIG. 12 illustrates a pneumatic agricultural product conveying systemsimilar to that of FIG. 4, but employing different air flow divertervalves. During normal product delivery, e.g., seeding or fertilizerapplication, air flows from fan 40 through one-way (open or closed)valve 98 and into the plenum 46. Thereafter, the agricultural materialis metered to and becomes entrained in the air flow which is apportionedamong the several distribution lines such as 50, 52 and 54 forapplication to a field. The filling system is activated by closing valve98 and opening valves 100 and 102 thereby diverting the air flow, asindicated at 82, to the venturi box 58 where product is drawn from asupply source 60 and into the air flow. The replenishing flow of productis deposited in the tank and exhaust air flows back into the conveyingsystem through open valve 102. Operation of the three valves aremutually dependent so that when valves 100 and 102 are open, valve 98 isclosed. Upon completion of the refilling process and to resume materialdistribution, valves 100 and 102 are then closed and valve 98 opened.

FIG. 13 shows another variation on the product conveying system. Herethe air flow is diverted later in the system to reduce the length ofhoses required. Air flow with material already entrained is divertedfrom certain ones of the air/product distribution lines (here 54, forexample) by multiple two-way diverter valves 104, 106 and 108. Thevalves of FIGS. 5-7 or of FIGS. 8-11 are suitable, but other suitablevalving arrangements maybe employed. Exhaust air is returned through ahose as shown by arrow 110 to the same certain distribution lines.Operation is otherwise as previously described, however, if, forexample, a seeding operation and a replenishing operation are takingplace at the same time, there may exist a preferential air flow in thedistribution lines such as 50 and 52 which are not connected to thereplenishing system. This problem may be minimized by including amovable baffle within the plenum as shown in FIGS. 14 and 15.

During normal product delivery, the baffle 112 assumes the positionshown in FIG. 14. When valves 104, 106 and 108 are changed to theirreplenish condition, to minimize preferential air flow to thenon-participating distribution lines, baffle 112 is pivoted about ahinge 114 to the position shown in FIG. 15 and air flow through theplenum is diverted. Arrow 116 indicates normal air/product deliverywhile arrow 118 shows the replenish condition where the flow tends moretoward the valved distribution lines such as 54.

FIG. 16 illustrates a pneumatic agricultural product conveying systemsimilar to that of FIGS. 4 and 12, but employing a different exhaust airtechnique. During normal product delivery e.g., seeding or fertilizerapplication, air flows from fan 40 through two-way valve 120 and intothe plenum 46. Thereafter, the agricultural material is metered to andbecomes entrained in the air flow which is apportioned among the severaldistribution lines such as 50, 52 and 54 for application to a field asbefore. The filling system is activated by changing valve 120 therebydiverting the air flow from the plenum as indicated, to the venturi box58 where product is drawn from a supply source 60 and into the air flow.The replenishing flow of product is deposited in the tank and exhaustair flows from the tank through conduit 122 and downwardly to diffuser124 from which it is evacuated toward the ground at low velocity througha plurality of laterally spaced apart outlets as shown by arrows 126 inFIGS. 3 and 16. When the exhaust air is diffused in this way, or, asdescribed earlier, returned to the flow going to the implement, operatorexposure to undesirable chemicals or other remaining particles isminimized.

In FIGS. 16 and 17, air flow from the fan 40 is diverted by two-wayvalve 120 through conduit 128 to the venturi box 58 as indicated byarrows 127 and 129. From venturi box 58, air entrained agriculturalproduct flows through conduit 130 as indicated by arrow 131 into tank48. Exhaust air is released from tank 48 through diffuser 124. Two-wayvalve 120 may be implemented as a pair of simple one-way (open orclosed) valves similar to those in FIG. 12 or by any other suitabletechnique, for example, as shown in FIG. 18.

In FIG. 18, a pair of flow divider baffles 132 and 134 are pivotableabout their respective hinges 136 and 138. In the horizontal position,air may flow from conduit 140 to conduit 142. In this position, air flowinto conduit 144 is blocked by baffle 134. The baffles may be pivoted inunison as indicated by the dotted lines to a position where baffle 132blocks any air flow into conduit 142 while baffle 134 allows air flowinto conduit 144.

FIGS. 19 and 20 show one implementation of the air lock or rotary feeder45 and venturi box. FIG. 20 is a cross-sectional view along lines 20-20of FIG. 19. The air lock has a cylinder 146 rotatable about an axis in acounter-clockwise direction as shown by the arrow. The cylinder 146 hasa plurality of wedge-shaped pockets such as 148 and 150 which take onproduct from the source 43 when opening upwardly and release productdownwardly into the venturi region after about one-half revolution. Thecylinder fits within cylindrical sidewalls 152 sufficiently closely toprevent any significant air passage. There is a seed gate 154 forcontrolling the flow of particulate material from the hopper 43 into theupper wedge shaped segments (roughly those between the nine and twelveo'clock positions). The inlet in the region of the seed gate is offsetsomewhat to aid in avoiding pressure loss from the venturi. At around afive o'clock position, the material falls from the wedge shapedsegments. Thus, as shown, segment 148 would be filled with material fromthe tank while segment 150 has emptied material which is funneled byseed ramps such as 156 into the venturi region below and transportedusing air from fan 39. A motor 158 is enabled to cause the cylinder 146to rotate about axle or shaft 160 delivering material to the venturiregion. In an alternative embodiment, the cylinder 146 may be free torotate in much the same way as an overshot water wheel due to off axismaterial weight.

Three different scenarios for supplying air to the filling system havebeen discussed. Air may be diverted at the air cart fan outlet, or maybe diverted later in the system from nearby hoses. An independent ordedicated fan and motor may be employed. Further, three techniques forexhaust air treatment are disclosed. Exhaust air may be returned to theair cart product conveying system immediately downstream of the air cartfan, or returned later in the product conveying system. Also, exhaustair may be simply directed downwardly through a diffuser beneath the aircart. Several combinations of these techniques have been explained andothers will be readily apparent.

While this invention has been described with respect to at least oneembodiment, the present invention can be further modified within thespirit and scope of this disclosure. This application is thereforeintended to cover any variations, uses, or adaptations of the inventionusing its general principles. Further, this application is intended tocover such departures from the present disclosure as come within knownor customary practice in the art to which this invention pertains andwhich fall within the limits of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A pneumatic agricultural product conveyingsystem, comprising: at least one product supply chamber; a pneumaticsource; a plenum configured to receive air flow from the pneumaticsource and having a plurality of outlets; a plurality of distributionlines extending from the plenum outlets for applying air entrainedproduct to an agricultural field; a metering device for supplyingproduct from the supply chamber to the distribution lines; a refillingsystem including an elongated conduit having an inlet near one end forreceiving product from a supply source and an outlet near the other endfor conveying product to the chamber to replenish the product supply inthe chamber; an air flow source comprising a diverter; and a venturi boxhaving an inlet and at least one venturi coupled to the air flow source,an inlet for receiving product from the supply source, and an outletcoupled to the conduit one end for providing product from the supplysource entrained within air flow from the pneumatic source, wherein thediverter is configured to direct air flow toward the venturi box.
 2. Thepneumatic agricultural product conveying system of claim 1, furthercomprising an exhaust air return for providing exhaust air flow from thechamber to be diffused at lower air speed through the product conveyingsystem only when the air flow diverter is directing air flow from thepneumatic source.
 3. The pneumatic agricultural product conveying systemof claim 2, wherein the exhaust air return couples the product supplychamber to the plenum.
 4. The pneumatic agricultural product conveyingsystem of claim 1, wherein the air flow diverter is located intermediatethe pneumatic source and the plenum for normally coupling the source andplenum, and occasionally directing air flow away from the plenum andtoward the conduit one end.
 5. The pneumatic agricultural productconveying system of claim 4, wherein the air flow diverter comprises atwo-way valve positioned intermediate the pneumatic source and theplenum and operable in a first position to provide direct air flow fromthe pneumatic source to only the plenum, and in a second position toprevent air flow from the pneumatic source to the plenum while allowingair flow from the pneumatic source to the refilling system and exhaustair flow from the supply chamber to the plenum.
 6. The pneumaticagricultural product conveying system of claim 1, further comprising anair lock for conveying product from the supply source to the venturi boxwhile preventing significant air flow from the venturi box to the supplysource.